‘Hardest work I’ve ever loved’: firefighting on the frontlines

The Buffalo River Company from Arkansas has joined 1200 firefighters battling the Idaho blaze that grown into the most dangerous fire in the nation. NBC’s Miguel Almaguer spent a day with the crew, who are putting their own safety in danger to protect nearby homes.

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>>>now a growing war from the ground and in the air, accelerating tonight as wildfires spread to nearly a dozen states now. the worst conditions in years. late today the
national interagency fire center
listed two
idaho
fires as the nation's top priorities. nbc's
miguel
almaguer is live at
base camp
in haley,
idaho
, where one of the biggest fires is still burning.
miguel
, good evening.

>> reporter: lester, good evening.
base camp
is a city within a city. firefighters from all across the country rotate in and out of this place
24 hours a day
. but when they are on that mountain behind me, they all have the same goal, protect property and lives. today the
buffalo river
crew from arkansas clears the way near the
front lines
in
idaho
. this team of 20, men and women, spend 16 hours a day clearing brush, creating containment lines, it's back-breaking work.

>> reporter: ryan green
has fought fires in 16 states so far this summer. this month he slept in his own bed twice.

>>why do you do this work?

>>because i love it. it is the hardest work i've ever lo loved.

>> reporter: the
buffalo river
company joined 1,800 firefighting personnel, battling the
beaver creek
fire, the most dangerous in the nation. crews are making progress. only one home has been lost here so far. the johnsons are among the nearly 1,200 evacuated who could lose their dream home.

>>there was a
wall of fire
that i've never, ever seen in my life. phenomenal. it is a sheet of just gold.

>> reporter: nationwide, 18,000 fire personnel are working on little sleep in scorching temperatures. in california, 9 of 19
national forests
are on fire. the conditions here are explosive. listen. in oregon, mandatory evacuations at the dales fire, 714 firefighters here. back in
idaho
, it's pb&j and an apple for lunch on day nine for engine boss
shawn moore
, a second-generation firefighter. he says this is the
family business
even though this summer he's rarely seen his own.

>>for me the toughest part about this job is having a brand-new kid at home, you know. six days from now, he'll be 8 months old. a lot of his firsts are happening while i'm out here on the line.

>> reporter: a sacrifice for men and women on the front-lines and their families at home, too. in addition to all of those firefighters on the
front lines
, private
insurance companies
have hired their own firefighters to protect some of the more exclusive properties in this neighborhood. but again, the goal is the same here, to protect structures. this fire, lester, is nearly 10% contained.